On abortion, Dewhurst tweets his truth

By Lisa Falkenberg |
June 20, 2013
| Updated: June 20, 2013 8:28pm

If you trust the sky-is-falling predictions from the folks at Planned Parenthood, Republican lawmakers in Austin are conniving to cram through legislation during the special session intended to end statewide access to "safe and legal abortion" in Texas.

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and other Republican supporters of the legislation have rejected this, saying bills to hike abortion clinic standards are simply about protecting women's health.

Then, early this week, a reputable party with intimate knowledge of Republican motivates came forward on Twitter to set the record straight.

He then linked to a Planned Parenthood release showing that nearly 40 abortion providers could be forced to close under the legislation, with only about five left standing, a consequence the release said "would essentially ban abortion statewide."

Dewhurst's momentary bout with honesty was a telling moment for the flailing politician, who is desperate to win back support from social conservatives and tea partiers who passed him over for Ted Cruz in the 2012 U.S. Senate race.

In summing up that loss recently, Dewhurst told Dallas-area news outlets a new campaign team back then "didn't get me."

But there are some of us who do get David Dewhurst. He's an enigma wrapped in a campaign bumper sticker.

His tweet told us what we knew. The harmful attack on Texas' remaining abortion providers is more about protecting political prospects than protecting women.

And the whole debate apparently runs contrary to the priorities of average Texans.

Texans questioned recently in a University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll were divided on if and when abortion should be permissible, but only 2 percent named abortion as the most important issue facing the country.

It ranked 12th over all, tying with taxes, gas prices and several other issues

Misplaced focus

A bipartisan poll released Thursday by the ACLU of Texas, in which nearly half of respondents self-identified as Republicans, found that a majority of Texans oppose legislation restricting abortion clinics. About 80 percent did not want the abortion issue raised at all in the special session and 71 percent of registered voters said state leaders should be more focused on the economy and jobs.

The bill Dewhurst tweeted about would require abortion clinics to convert to ambulatory surgical centers, regardless of whether they perform surgeries or use a pill to induce abortions. They would have to meet stricter facility standards, add staff in case of emergencies and foot the bill for expensive retrofits on everything from wider doors for gurneys to air-sterilization systems and backup generators.

Outdated protocol

The bill also puts restrictions on doctors prescribing pills that induce abortions, changes that have been deemed unnecessary and harmful by physicians such as Houston Dr. Lisa Hollier, chairwoman of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' Texas District. She has testified to lawmakers that the FDA protocol set out in the bill is outdated, and could force doctors to follow regimens that are more expensive for patients, less effective and cause more side effects.

One mother, who became pregnant on ineffective contraception, found out she had a 50-50 chance of surviving the pregnancy due to complications with a congenital heart defect. She chose to end the pregnancy so she would be around to raise her other three children.

Another patient chose to forgo treatment for cancer in order to continue her pregnancy. The mother died when her daughter was 3 years old.

"I'm concerned that the bills have the potential to hurt women's health by interfering with the doctor-patient relationship," she told me.

A womn's choice

These are deeply personal, often painful, decisions that should be made by a woman, her family and her doctor. They are not the stuff of politics or fodder for a boastful tweet. They are not the business of suited men in leather chairs who have never lain in stirrups. They are not a life raft for a sinking politician.